What is the purpose of the Ivy Mass exercise?

Ivy Mass is a U.S. Army exercise in which a red team simulates an adversary by jamming friendly drone systems, communications, and command-and-control networks. The goal is to uncover tactical and technical vulnerabilities before they can be exploited in actual combat.

How will the exercise findings affect Army procurement?

The key findings from Ivy Mass are expected to inform specific procurement recommendations and doctrinal updates, with a particular focus on strengthening counter-UAS (C-UAS) systems and electronic warfare capabilities to operate in complex electromagnetic environments.

What is a red team exercise in military training?

A red team exercise involves military personnel role-playing as an adversary force to test and stress the defenses, systems, and tactics of friendly units. It helps identify weaknesses under realistic conditions, enabling improvements before actual conflict.

Exclusive: How the U.S. Army Jams Its Own Troops — and What It Learned

A Breaking Defense reporter embedded with a U.S. Army red team during the 'Ivy Mass' exercise, observing how the Army conducts electronic jamming tests against its own forces. Key findings from the exercise are expected to directly shape future tactical doctrine and equipment procurement, particularly in counter-UAS and electronic warfare capabilities.

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Highlights

A Breaking Defense reporter embedded with a U.S. Army red team during the Ivy Mass exercise, gaining exclusive access to live friendly-force jamming operations.

The Army red team jammed its own drone systems, communications equipment, and command-and-control networks to evaluate operational resilience in a contested electromagnetic environment.

Exercise findings are expected to directly influence U.S. Army tactical doctrine revisions and procurement priorities, especially for counter-UAS and electronic warfare systems.

Ivy Mass results will serve as a key reference for the Army's broader modernization program, including drone system integration and adversary jamming countermeasures.

Exclusive: How the U.S. Army Jams Its Own Troops — and What It Learned

A Breaking Defense reporter was granted rare access to embed with a U.S. Army red team during the 'Ivy Mass' exercise, witnessing firsthand how the Army conducts electronic jamming operations against its own forces to assess operational resilience and response capabilities.

Learning from the Enemy: The Red Team Exercise

During the exercise, the Army red team played the role of an adversary force, executing jamming operations against friendly drone systems, communications equipment, and command-and-control networks. This 'attack yourself' training methodology is designed to identify and address tactical and technical vulnerabilities before they can be exploited in real conflict.

The key findings revealed during the exercise are expected to have far-reaching implications for the U.S. Army's future tactical adjustments and related procurement plans — particularly in the areas of counter-unmanned aircraft systems (C-UAS) and electronic warfare (EW) capability development.

Implications for Future Procurement and Tactics

Based on the exercise outcomes, the Army will review and refine current tactical doctrine while formulating specific procurement recommendations to ensure forces can maintain effective combat capability in complex electromagnetic environments.

The insights gained from Ivy Mass will serve as a critical reference point for the Army's broader modernization efforts, especially regarding the integration of drone systems and the enhancement of capabilities to counter adversary jamming.